The Gap Between Li Xuan and Me

When Jiang Zhu saw her grandfather's expression, she knew he had begun to take Li Xuan seriously as well. Her big eyes darted around as she whispered,

"Grandpa, Li Xuan doesn't have a home anymore. Why don't we let him live with us from now on? He can be my little brother. Once this incident is over, I'll take him to Spirit Hall to awaken, then send him to school."

"Oh, Jiang Zhu, Grandpa really does want him to stay with us, but our family is terribly poor. Supporting you through school is already difficult enough. If we have to support another child's schooling too, I'm afraid we won't be able to afford it."

"It's okay, Grandpa. Once I obtain a spirit ring, I'll treat people and take odd jobs. That way, I can earn tuition and help little brother Li Xuan."

Jiang Zhu spoke earnestly, clearly having thought everything through.

"That works too. It'll just be hard on you."

"It's fine." Jiang Zhu waved her little hand, completely unconcerned.

"Sigh, Grandpa has actually saved up some money too. I was planning to use it for when you got married after growing up. If you ever need it urgently, ask Grandpa for it. Don't always shoulder everything yourself," the Old Village Chief sighed.

"I know, Grandpa. I'll go over to Li Xuan first."

The moment Jiang Zhu heard the word "married," she became a little embarrassed. After saying that, she hurriedly ran toward Li Xuan.

The Old Village Chief remained where he was, pondering where he could get some money to help the two children attend school.

Elsewhere.

Jiang Zhu jogged to the village entrance and saw Li Xuan observing the situation outside. She walked over, pinched his little cheek, and asked curiously,

"Little brother Li Xuan, what are you looking at? Aren't the trenches already finished? There are three whole trenches. There definitely won't be a problem."

"Three trenches definitely aren't enough. Have you considered that if this pack of Gray Wolves suddenly attacked the village, there must be a leader among them? It might even be a High-Level Spirit Beast," Li Xuan analyzed.

"A High-Level Spirit Beast?"

Jiang Zhu froze at those words and asked worriedly, "Then... then what should we do?"

"We can only keep preparing. Don't worry, if we really can't hold on, I still have other methods. Right now, the priority is to make the most thorough preparations. Keep digging trenches—dig several more. Also, prepare some tripwires and cheval de frise."

Li Xuan spoke quickly. Since he wanted to complete the high-level option, he tried not to use the Experience Card unless necessary.

"Mm-hm, I'll go call Huang Yuan and the others right away."

After hearing Li Xuan's words, Jiang Zhu was actually rather confused because she did not understand them.

Even so, she nodded without hesitation and hurried away on her little feet.

After a while, she returned with a large group of people carrying all kinds of tools.

"Little brother Li Xuan, everyone's here. What should we do?!"

"Keep digging the trenches. Dig at least five more. Huang Yuan, Jing Ling, go prepare tripwires and cheval de frise."

"Tripwires? Cheval de frise? What are those?" Huang Yuan and Jing Ling were baffled.

"Jiang Zhu, go get paper and a pen. I'll draw diagrams for you." Li Xuan sighed helplessly.

"Okay."

Over the following hours, Li Xuan continued assigning tasks and making preparations to deal with the Gray Wolf pack's attack.

By the time the sun set and dusk arrived, all the preparations had been completed. Li Xuan finally let out a sigh of relief.

"Little brother Li Xuan, come eat. I made rice for you."

At a stone table near the village entrance, Li Xuan was watching the Gray Wolves gathering outside the village when Jiang Zhu came jogging over with a food box.

She placed the rice from the food box in front of Li Xuan, then set down a small bowl for herself. Between them was a small plate of pickled vegetables. There was nothing else.

"Jiang Zhu, is there any other food?"

Li Xuan asked tentatively. Other than plain rice, there were only pickled vegetables. For Li Xuan, who had been a chef in his previous life, there were indeed too few dishes.

"I'm sorry, little brother Li Xuan. There isn't much money at home, so... so..." Jiang Zhu lowered her head awkwardly.

"It's fine, it's fine. This is enough."

Li Xuan comforted her softly and did not bring it up again, though his gaze turned toward the small river outside the village.

"Jiang Zhu, what's that river called? There should be fish and shrimp in it, right? Why doesn't anyone catch them?" Li Xuan asked curiously.

"It's called the Luoshan River. There are actually lots of fish and shrimp in it, but they're different from the fish and shrimp in other rivers.

They've been affected by Soul Power, and their teeth are extremely sharp. They can easily bite through fishing nets, and they're very fast too. Ordinary people simply can't catch them; only Soul Masters can.

But why would Soul Masters come here and waste their time catching fish? So even though Luoshan Fish live in the river and fetch fairly high prices, hardly anyone catches them."

Jiang Zhu explained softly, looking somewhat dejected.

"I see. Tell me more about the Luoshan River." Li Xuan ate as he asked.

"Okay."

Over the next while, the two ate and chatted. Li Xuan thus learned a great deal about the area and gained a rough understanding of the situation.

"The Gray Wolf pack is attacking! The Gray Wolf pack is attacking!!"

An anxious shout suddenly rang out, accompanied by the hurried sound of gongs.

Clang, clang, clang! Amid the loud ringing of gongs, the villagers quickly gathered, carrying bows, arrows, and all kinds of weapons as they waited atop the village defenses, watching the more than one thousand Gray Wolves outside with deep anxiety.

They were so frightened that many people trembled even while holding weapons. Some even burst into tears, terrified that they would be bitten to death by the wolf pack.

The Old Village Chief, Jiang Zhu, and the others rushed out to comfort them, but it had no effect at all. Instead, it made the villagers even more unsettled.

Seeing this, Li Xuan stepped before everyone and shouted,

"Don't worry, everyone. There are fewer Gray Wolves than I expected. It won't be difficult to stop them!"

"Little brother Li Xuan, can we really stop the Gray Wolf pack? If we can't, we're finished," one villager said fearfully.

"What's there to fear from such a small number of wolves? These trenches were prepared for a pack of three thousand Gray Wolves. There are only this many now. Forget charging into the village—the traps outside and those three trenches alone will be enough to make them suffer."

Li Xuan spoke loudly, his voice filled with calm confidence.

Those words, along with his composed and unhurried bearing, instantly relaxed the anxious villagers. Even those who had been crying loudly stopped.

The atmosphere throughout the village gradually changed because of Li Xuan's words.

"This..."

The village chief, Jiang Zhu, Huang Yuan, and the others stared at the scene, which seemed to have completely changed, then looked at Li Xuan in astonishment.

They had tried so hard to comfort everyone just now, yet it had done nothing.

But Li Xuan had stepped out and said only a few words, and the problem had been solved. They all clearly felt the difference—and the gap between themselves and Li Xuan.

"Jiang Zhu, where did you pick up Li Xuan? Hurry and tell me the location," the Old Village Chief suddenly said seriously.

"Huh? Why?" Jiang Zhu asked blankly.

"I'll pick one up too."

Jiang Zhu: "..."